


Find Me Once; Always and Forever

by Kellyscams



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Anal Sex, Angel Shiro (Voltron), Angst, Blow Jobs, Bottom Shiro (Voltron), Brainwashing, Demon Keith (Voltron), Established Relationship, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Fighting, Forehead Kisses, Happy Ending, Hospitalization, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Kidnapping, Light Dom/sub, Love, M/M, Making Love, Non-Linear Narrative, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Top Keith (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-05 07:18:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17320481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kellyscams/pseuds/Kellyscams
Summary: After a narrowly escaping enslavement and death at the hands of the demon witch, Haggar, Shiro has been taken somewhere to recover. The problem is, Keith doesn't know where, and he'll stop at nothing until he finds him.





	Find Me Once; Always and Forever

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ViperSeven](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ViperSeven/gifts), [lostromanianpuppy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostromanianpuppy/gifts).



_**Now** _

The crowd in the bar hushed as he stepped through the door. Hardly unusual. His kind rarely ventured out during the day and never in a nice place like this. For Keith, the blood-red sky of the setting sun felt night enough for him. His eyes roamed across those sitting in the bar. Their unease upon having a demon step within their space tingled right out from the center of Keith’s belly. 

They didn’t recognize him, but then, he didn’t come donning the armor that would proclaim him a Paladin. The only demon one among them. 

“Can I get you anything?” asked the bartender, who was no more obliging to him than any of his customers, but would have a serious problem on his hands if he refused service to a demon on the mere fact that he was a demon. “Sir?”

The _sir_ was added as a quick afterthought, as though the forgotten use of an honorific would somehow entice the demon lurking in the doorway to summon a portal to the very depths of darkness for not saying a simple word. 

Keith sighed and shook his head. “I’m looking for someone.” 

“We don’t get much of your kind here,” he answered and Keith watched all the blood drain from his face. “Not… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like--”

“I know what you meant,” he said and let the door close as he stepped in completely. “I’m not looking for a demon.” Keith approached the bar and didn’t care about startling him with his inhuman speed. He was running out of patience. “I’m looking for an angel, actually.” 

That changed everything. Humans were quite protective of their angels. To give one up to a demon would probably seem unthinkable to them. To some, anyway. Humans were made of light and darkness. Their lives depended on how much they relied on each of them. 

The bartender’s face stiffened. Keith didn’t back off. He even leaned a little more across the bar. If they were to fear him just because he was a demon, then he’d give them a reason to fear him. 

“An angel?” the bartender repeated. “Why’re you looking for an angel?”

“He’s a friend of mine,” Keith told him. He reached into his pocket and, surely, the man could see the blade he kept at his side. “His name is Takashi Shirogane.”

Neither demons nor angels could be captured by human cameras. They kept inventing nifty new gadgets, but none of them managed to get anything more than a blur. They used to believe this was because demons had no souls. Angels, their excuse, had souls so pure their image could not be contained. 

Keith slid a drawing of Shiro across the bar. “Have you seen him?”

The man glanced down at the picture. An uninterested glance, his mind made up that he wouldn’t help Keith even if he did know Shiro. His eyes gave him away. In them flashed recognition and he took a closer look at the drawing. 

“When was the last time you saw him?” Keith asked. 

“I…” He shook his head and started cleaning the bar. “I don’t know him. I’ve never seen him before.” 

Humans, Keith thought, anger spreading. Always the same. 

He reached out and snatched the man by the front of the shirt to hold him in place. Keith could’ve yanked him clear over the bar, but just managed to settle for holding him face-to-face.

“ _Look_ ,” he growled. “Shiro is a good friend of mine. I _need_ to find him. _Where_ is he?” 

The man’s pupils dilated, black spilling over brown. His mouth opened several times, causing only a mix of mismatched and fumbled over words. 

“Okay, I’ll tell you,” he whispered. “Just… don’t hurt me.” 

His eyes, Keith realized, had dropped to Keith’s blade. Which Keith, and he didn’t remember doing this, had a hand wrapped around the handle. He let his fingers come off it, slowly lifting them away one by one. 

“Where is he?” 

“He’s… not far from here,” he said. “Recovering at the Garrison.” 

The Garrison. Hm. That presented something of a problem. 

While it was common law that demons be given the same basic rights as everyone else, the Garrison was different entirely. It was a place for the Divine. And Keith certainly wouldn’t be considered Divine. 

Releasing the still tight hold he had on the bartender, Keith nodded and stuffed his drawing into his side pouch. 

“Thank you,” he mumbled and ignored who shied away from him as he made his way back to the door. 

“He’s been through so much.” The bartender’s voice came out weak and shaky, though his words came from a place of courage. “After what that witch did to him, can’t you just leave him alone? Hasn’t he been through enough?”

Eyes falling closed, Keith sighed and paused just at the door. His hand stiffened around the doorknob and if not careful, he might crush it. 

“Yes,” Keith whispered. “He has.”

He shoved the door open and let the nighttime air wash over him. A moonless night, the sky blackened without the calm serenity of its pure light. 

Keith threw his hood up and made his way down the street toward the Garrison. He’d get in there. One way or another, he’d get to Shiro tonight. 

He already knew the way he needed to take to break into the Garrison. It wasn’t like he could just stroll through the doors and hand the guards his drawing with some story from a demon’s lips about him being friends with Takashi Shirogane. The truth wouldn’t matter. What happened that night had already been twisted to sell papers and serve the greater good. 

No matter. 

Shiro, when Keith last saw him, was alive. 

*

_**Then** _

Nothing ever stayed quiet in Daibazaal. When something significant, no matter how big or small happened, the whispers of it could be heard within every wall of the demon city. This time hadn’t been different. 

The knock on Keith’s door at dawn caught him by surprise. Visitors were scarce enough that one showing up at dawn meant trouble. A chill swept up his spine when he saw who called upon him. 

“Ulaz?” he questioned, opening the door once he knew trusted company could be found behind it. “Thace?”

Their faces told him what they didn’t need with words. Trouble, as he already expected, lurked somewhere in the depths of their city. As members of the Blade of Marmora -- the closest thing to a governing force around these parts for those innocently trying to get past the barrier between angels and demons -- their information came from inside sources. Spies among those demons stuck in the ancient idea that demons were nothing but a force of evil. 

“Have you heard?” Ulaz asked, not taking the offered gesture to seat on Keith’s couch. “You haven’t heard.” 

No need to answer. Keith had no idea what they were talking about. He’d spent this night alone. Hoping. For naught. 

“Heard what?” Keith answered. “What’s happened?”

“There’s been an abduction,” Thance said.

Keith’s shoulder slumped. They’d gone almost a year -- a full _year_ \-- without some self-righteous demon taking someone. This would only fuel more hatred. Exorcism that resulted in unnecessary deaths -- demons, angels, and humans alike. Those brave enough to move out of a demon city to give their family a better life and attempt integration would face more ostracization and harassment. The innocent always paid for the crimes of the wicked. 

“A child?” Keith asked. It was always worse with a child. 

They exchanged a glance. Ulaz stepped closer and placed a hand on Keith’s shoulder. Another bad sign if they were trying to keep him calm already. Under that hand, Keith tensed.

“No,” he said, “they took no human.”

“I don’t understand.”

Why were they here then?

“An angel, Keith,” Thace clarified. “They took an angel.” 

The slump to Keith’s shoulder dropped to his stomach, Thance’s words punching him right in the gut. Keith’s pulse rushed through his ears. 

“Is it him?” he asked. He tried to, anyway. Difficult to say much of anything when his throat closed. “Ulaz, is it Shiro?”

Another hand grasped his other shoulder. Shook it. Keith’s eyes, looking past these four walls already, lifted to Thace.

“We don’t know for sure,” Ulaz said. “But he’s the only one seen around these streets recently.”

“And,” Thace added, “he’s well-known. A high target.” 

A wave of nausea rolled over Keith. For three days and nights now he’d been waiting for a call from Shiro. When it hadn’t come tonight, Keith figured it was over. After all, how long did he really expect an angel to love a demon? 

But this. This was different. 

Keith pulled away from them and charged into his bedroom. From the back of his closet, he yanked out his old Blade of Marmora uniform. He didn’t care that technically he no longer belonged with them, he was going. 

“Keith--”

“Don’t try to talk me out of it, Ulaz,” he grunted, storming across the room to grab the blade off his nightstand. “I’m going.” 

“We wouldn’t think of it,” Thace said. “They don’t know we’re here.” 

Keith paused with his hand tightly around the hilt of his blade. He swallowed down the fear that bubbled inside of him. No amount of fear would stop him. He turned and looked back. 

They hadn’t come to stop him.

They came to help him.

*

_**Now** _

The outskirts of the city were easy to reach. No one would question Keith as he left and wandered into the deserts. Not even human law enforcement. A demon wandering around at night was not exactly out of the ordinary. A demon lost in the desert was even better.

But Keith wouldn’t get lost. He knew his way to the Garrison. He’d been going there since he was a child. 

In the cover of night, it’d be easy not to be tracked. The problem lied with getting inside. The gates were high and the doors were locked. 

The wind kicked up sand as he walked. Keith shielded his eyes and hid beneath his hood. Crossing a busy desert would be worth it so long as he reached Shiro. The stars were there to encourage him along the way. They may not’ve been there for Keith, but they’d led straight to Shiro. The light in the dark. 

Keith slowed when the Garrison shown bright in the distance. This would be easier if the other Paladins were there or even the Holts. Any of them wouldn’t question Keith’s appearance. But they were gone again. Out on their mission to bring peace among demons and angels and humans across the world. There were new people at the Garrison now. People who knew nothing of Keith and Shiro’s love. 

It would be a challenge, but he knew the one way to break in. Most people didn’t think of the sewage system. The underground tunnels that ran from the desert all the way back to civilization. But, just like any place, the Garrison needed a waste management system and their septic tanks had gotten old fast a long time ago. 

The trick was knowing just where to go. 

Lucky for Keith, he did. 

Unlucky for Keith, nothing about the sewers had changed. Not that he’d particularly expected them to. No one was going to go down there and scrub them out once a month. Give the stone walls a pretty paint job. They were the sewers. A place meant for waste.

Without a second thought, Keith jumped into them. 

In a way, this made the trip easier. Not just the vast, lonely desert out in front of him. All that nothingness. At least down here, he had rats for company. Life. 

Keith knew just when he’s crossed past the gates. The sewers echoed sounds off their walls perfectly. Almost sounded like they were happening right there. Keith could hear them walking. Even across the ground. The ever busy commands being followed as the night went on as though a demon hadn’t snuck onto the property. 

Keith waited for the right moment. The shift change. One might think that would see more guards out at once. Instead, most ending their shifts went inside to fill out paperwork while those starting did the same. Less traffic. Much easier for Keith to simply slip out unseen. 

The next task would be finding Shiro’s room. Which actually turned out simpler than he would’ve figured. Up at the top. Corner. Where the light shined brightest. 

Keith held back a smile. Not the time. He wasn’t there yet. Hope was not something he could afford. Hope, he knew all too well, was dangerous. 

First checking to make sure no one had spotted him, Keith scaled the side of the building. Up the drainpipe. Rivets helping him along the way. He needed to pause once as a spotlight hovered near him. Relief ran through him when he reached the top. The window was unlocked. 

Keith eased it open and slipped inside. He stood. And almost fell to his knees to weep at what he saw. Shiro. Asleep. Tucked comfortably in a bed. 

“Shiro,” he breathed. Keith’s heart filled with so many emotions he was sure it would burst. 

His arm had been replaced. A new prosthetic. It fit to his body beautifully. Like the rest of him. Keith took a measured step closer to the bed. He looked so peaceful in his sleep. Unlike Keith’s demon horns and fangs, angels’ wings and halos were not visible during sleep. They’d reappear upon waking, but Keith did not want to wake him. Shiro needed to rest. 

Still.

Still, Keith needed to touch him. Just to feel him. Feel the life running through him. Feel his warmth. Keith just needed to touch him. 

Kneeling beside the bed, Keith gently placed a hand over Shiro’s wrist. Something rushed through him at the touch. He had no word for which to call it, but it made him tremble and gasp and had tears rushing to his eyes. 

“Oh, Shiro,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry.” 

He’d’ve never even stepped in Daibazaal if it wasn’t for him. At least, not at night. Shiro was already well known there. As an outspoken activist for demon rights, Shiro had a lot of friends and enemies on both sides of the fight. Demons holding onto the ancient ways would do anything to put a stop to him. Despite all the threats, all the danger, all the hatred, Shiro charged forward. Pushed on with his cause. A beacon of hope. Shiro took the mantle like he was born into it. 

Then there was Keith. 

The demon he’d taken -- literally -- under his wing years ago and fought for and protected at every turn. 

Falling in love with Shiro was as natural as breathing. His heart, so pure and kind. His empathy always true and real. His sense of justice to do the right thing over-shadowing any bit of intolerance anyone could ever have even after suffering at the hands of demons years ago. 

A soft sound slipped from Shiro’s lips. His eyes scrunched and the hand under Keith’s shifted. Keith wished to sooth him back to a peaceful slumber, but Shiro’s eyes were already opening. Not fully, but just enough to be awake as his beautiful, glorious wings appeared. One laid softly over his body, the other swayed down toward the floor. His halo, bright and golden and shadowed in beauty only by Shiro, came next.

He groaned slightly, leftover sleep rumbling through his throat. Taking in a deep breath, Shiro’s eyes drifted toward Keith. For a moment, he just stared. Then, a frown. That frown sliced right into Keith’s heart. Shiro’d never looked at him like that before. 

“No,” Shiro whispered. “Please.” 

Keith tried to stand. Found his legs too weak to even try. Probably his heart hadn’t told them they could go anywhere yet. Hard, that. When it was in the process of breaking. Pieces splintering off one by one and falling away in wretched misery.

“I… I’m…” Words blocked his throat. Too many trying to come out at once. “I’m sorry. I’ll go.” 

The hand under his moved. Just enough to take a tight grip on Keith’s wrist. Shiro shook his head, eyes filled with a sort of pain Keith didn’t understand and would do anything to erase. Shiro shouldn’t feel pain. Ever. 

“Please,” Shiro said again. “Not this time.” 

“I don’t…” Keith shook his head. “I don’t understand.” 

“Keith…” The sound of his name from Shiro’s tongue almost put his heart back together. Almost. “This is the part where I always wake up.” 

*

_**Then** _

Keith stood miserably with his classmates. He hated everything about being at the Garrison. He didn’t want to be there. In turn, no one wanted him there either. They were all children, their few years of life a blip compared what his would be. To be fair, by demon standards, he was a mere fledging. Roughly a late teenager in human years. 

He was only there at the behest of his mother. It made sense, he supposed, even if he hated the idea. As an undercover agent for the Blades of Marmora, the job took her away for long stretches of time. Once his father died, she didn’t like the idea of him being on his own. She’d offered to stay with him. Even did for a spell. 

But the Blade of Marmora needed her more. Keith knew that. It was at his insistence that she return to them. 

This, however, placed him here. In the cadet program at the Garrison. Where he was mistrusted and disliked by his classmates upon sight. Probably half the staff, too. He kept to himself most of the time. Went out of his way to avoid group work. He didn’t like taking orders and made it known. Kind of hard to trust the orders handed out when no one trusted him. 

He’d daydream during class and was all too often goaded into a fight with someone. All it took was a few words to get his blood boiling. In all honesty, he felt bad afterward. About himself. About the situation. About everything. His mother brought him here because she wanted him to be safe. Keith wanted to make her proud. 

Currently, they gathered around an ATV meant to take someone great distances across the desert at great speeds. They wouldn’t be allowed to drive this one until they all passed their certification tests, but their instructor insisted they became familiar with the vehicle before even touching the simulator. 

Not much was expected of them today, is what they were told. Everyone’s first time in the simulator usually lasted a few minutes before they crashed. Keith stood in the back, watching as one by one, each cadet fell victim to their teacher’s prediction. 

“Keith Kogane.” His instructor called him forward. Classmates either sniggered or backed away. “It’s your turn.” 

Keith slipped into the simulator and readied himself for it to start. When it did, Keith found himself excited for the first time since being there. He felt free as he drove across the sand dunes with nothing but the open sky out on the horizon. It didn’t matter that this wasn’t real. This was exhilarating and he never wanted it to end.

“This is _bullshit_!” 

The shout yanked Keith right out of the virtual world around him and the simulation snapped to black when he crashed right off a sand dune. One of the other cadets, Keith didn’t bother learning their names, seemed quite displeased.

“He’s using some demon trick or something! No way could he stay on for twenty minutes!” 

Keith hopped down and walked up to him, fists curled and fangs bared. 

“That’s idiotic,” Keith replied, dryly. “What tricks would I need to beat _you_?”

“ _Enough_.” The instructor stepped between them. “That’s a demerit for both of you. Keith, you better learn to control that temper. Sometimes the best way to deal with a pest is to ignore them.” 

Heart thudding, Keith pulled away from the class. What the hell did he know. Nothing. Trembling with anger, Keith turn and found himself in front of the ATV again. He ran his fingers across the handlebars. Keith could take this and ride away from this place forever. It might’ve happened, too, if not for the soft, kind-hearted voice that came from behind. 

“Please, don’t do it.” 

Yanking his hand away, Keith spun around. He held back a roll of his eyes at who stood there. An angel. Great. Just what he needed. 

“I didn’t do anything,” Keith huffed. “Leave me alone.” 

The angel grinned. “I saw you on the simulator. That was quite impressive.”

“You’re saying an angel was impressed by a demon?” Keith scoffed. “I doubt that.” 

That grin simmered into a warm, understanding smile. His dark gray eyes held in them so much sincerity, Keith almost wanted to apologize. 

“What does you being a demon have to do with me being impressed?”

Keith blinked. “You’re… an angel. I’m a demon.” 

“What difference should that make?”

“I don’t… I don’t know.” Keith shrugged. “Doesn’t that… _mean_ something?”

Sun reflected off the angel’s halo when he leaned back with a slight chuckle. Those white wings, tipped in a glittering black, so full and admittedly, beautiful, shivered with amusement, twinkling in light. 

“Not to me, no. It shouldn’t to anyone.” He held out his hand. “My name’s Takashi Shirogane. My friends call me Shiro.”

Keith looked at the offered hand. No angel had ever extended such a greeting. None had treated him badly, per se, nor had they shown him such a kindness as wanting to shake his hand. 

Cautiously, Keith put his hand in Shiro’s. “I’m… my name is Keith.” 

“Keith,” Shiro repeated. “Nice to meet you. Now.” He pointed to the ATV. “You wanna take that for a ride, I’m gonna have to insist you have someone to supervise.”

Keith sighed. “They’re not gonna let me take it out. No one would come with me anyway.” 

Shiro smiled more. “Why don’t you leave that to me.”

They’d spent that afternoon out beyond the Garrison walls. Freedom blowing through Keith’s hair as he navigated over the sand, following Shiro on his own ATV. 

“You’re not bad, kid,” Shiro complimented when the first few starts winked down at them. “I told you. Impressive.” 

“Yeah, well.” Keith shrugged. “You’re not too bad yourself.”

Shiro rocked back with a laugh that had tears twinkle in his eyes. It was nice. Keith liked Shiro’s laugh. He smiled. 

“Why did you do this for me anyway?” Keith asked. “I’m just a demon.” 

“And you’ve got heart and spirit just like anyone else. You deserve the same chances as the rest of the world.”

To that, Keith had an answer that he was certain Shiro wouldn’t like. Compared to him, an angel who’d come along to help out some runt demon, Keith was worthless. 

Shiro came around more often after that. To check on him. To comfort him. To stick up for him to the faculty after he got into yet another fight. 

“The only reason he’s still here,” one of his commanding officer said some months later, “is because _you_ keep vouching for him. We’ve had other demons here and they’ve gotten on much better than him.”

“I understand,” Shiro answered. “I’ll handle it.” 

Shiro came out of her office and glanced at Keith. Not angry. Not even disappointed, really. Sad, maybe.

“Look, I know I messed up.” Keith grunted before Shiro could even utter a wod. He couldn’t look at him. “I’m sorry.”

“Hi,” he replied. “Are you okay?”

Keith sighed, his hands curling to fists. “I’m _fine_.”

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

“I’m no _good_ here, Shiro! I can’t do it.” Keith slammed his fists on the desk he sat at. In trouble. Again. “Just send me back to Daibazaal. At least I can be miserable there on my own.” 

Shiro watched him throw his tantrum with nothing but open patience. The way he always looked at Keith. Horns and fangs and claws and all. Like he was no different than anyone else. 

“You _can_ do it, Keith. I believe in you.” He dropped a hand on Keith’s head. “I will _never_ give up on you. And you can’t give up on yourself either. Promise me you won’t.”

The fight in Keith began to drift away. Those tightly gripped hands of anger and self-deprecation loosened, even if only slightly, and Keith’s gaze wandered up to Shiro’s again. 

“Shiro--”

“ _Promise_.”

“Okay,” Keith whispered. “I promise.” 

 

*

_**Now** _

Keith smiled down at Shiro. He shook his head and brushed a few pieces of stray hair away from his brow. 

“You’re not dreaming, Shiro,” he said. “I’m here.” 

Another moment passed over them and all Shiro did was stare, unblinking, as though the sight of Keith at his bedside couldn’t be true. A smile then broke across his face like the dawn kissing a new day. 

“Keith,” he whispered. “You’re here?”

Nodding, Keith kissed Shiro’s knuckles. 

“I am. I couldn’t just… I…” Keith smothered the side of his face into Shiro’s palm. “Oh, Shiro, I’m so sorry.” 

That hand gently fixed itself to his cheek and Shiro sat up, his other hand capturing his face in the middle of shame and doubt and inadequacy.

“What are you sorry for, Keith?” Shiro leaned his brow against his. “You did nothing wrong.” 

“Didn’t I?” Keith barked a dark, humorless chuckle. “If it wasn’t for me, this wouldn't’ve happened to you. Again. I bring you nothing but pain.” 

Staring that day at the Garrison. When they met and Shiro always went out of his way to speak on his behalf no matter what problems Keith caused. He put his good name on the line and Keith got himself expelled anyway. 

“Keith Kogane, you listen to me,” Shiro said. “That is the biggest lie ever told. You are my cherished one. You could never bring me pain.” 

“But--”

His words were cut off with a kiss. Deep and hard and Shiro’s fingers threaded through his hair as though needing to keep Keith right where he is. 

“No buts,” he said. “I love you. And I’ve missed you.”

Those big, lovely wings began to unfold and with them, Shiro held his arms out. Beckoning. Needing, Keith hoped, the same as he did. Keith forced back a round of stinging tears. He hadn’t cried once. He wouldn’t start now as he climbed into Shiro’s arms.

“You’re safe,” Keith murmured, pressing kisses across his collarbone. “You’re alive.”

Warm, soothing wings, swathed Keith in their embrace. Shiro, he thought, was glowing brighter than ever.

“Of course I am,” Shiro replied. “You saved me, remember?” 

*

_**Then** _

“We believe this is the work of the witch, Haggar,” Ulaz said as they swept the worst streets of Daibazaal. “She’s been trying to collect a pure source of Quintessence for centuries.” 

Knots pulled at Keith’s stomach. The more powerful the angel, the more Quintessence that ran through them. Even demons kept their distance from Haggar. 

“Who else knows about this?” Keith asked. 

“Nobody,” Thace replied. “We’re on our own.” 

Keith had feared as much. No one else in the Blade of Marmora knew what they were doing. That meant, if they failed, Shiro might be left with no one to help him. No. There would be no failing. Shiro had already saved Keith. In every way he didn’t know he needed saving. Keith would save Shiro now. And burn anyone who tried to get in his way. 

“Where are they keeping him?”

“The old hospital, we think,” Ulaz said. “That’s where Haggar does her experiments.”

Experiments. Strange thing to call them. Disgusting crimes was the word Keith would use. A perversion of nature. Attempts at possessions and soul stealing. The things Haggar and her followers had done were the very reason the world hated demons. _They_ were the things that went bump in the night. 

The coast was clear around the hospital, but a thick, purple aura surrounded it. Something wrong and unnatural.

“He’s in there,” Keith said. “Near the back.” 

Thace, looking through a pair of night-vision goggles, asked, “How do you know?”

Keith couldn’t quite explain it. Not in any way that they’d understand. He could _feel_ Shiro in there. Feel his light when he searched for it. 

“I just do.”

They nodded, trusting him and his instincts. 

Their plan was simple. Ulaz and Thace would break in first. With the guards occupied with them, Keith would be free to break through and search for Shiro. 

Which started off just beautifully. 

Ulaz and Thace, two of the strongest and most powerful members of the Blade of Marmora, broke down the front doors without a problem. A fight ensued. Demons surrounded them and, though instinct told him otherwise, Keith stayed back. Waited for the right moment to strike. 

It came. Right when Ulaz and Thace, back to back as their attackers tightened the circle they found themselves trapped in, pulled out their own blades and stuck back with such force the lot of them were knock to the ground 

“Now, Keith!” Ulaz yelled.

There was no need. Keith had already darted inside, blade at the ready, and blew past whatever demons had started getting back to their feet. 

He should have known something was wrong when no one followed him. No one even came to stop him. But all he focused on was getting there. Getting to Shiro. Running toward that feeling of warmth and love and home. 

Keith could see the doors. Light poured from each and every crevice, illumination spilling into the hallway and leading Keith right to him. 

‘Shiro!” Keith called when he burst through the doors. “Shiro, answer me!”

“Oh, I’m afraid he won’t do that.” 

She stepped out of the light drenched in shadows. Haggar. In all her vicious glory, she smiled at Keith. Fucking, _smiled_ at him. 

“Where is he?” Keith growled. “What have you _done_ with him?”

Keith should have know, he should’ve _known_. Haggar, though strong and powerful, would still need to defend herself. Not once did she move when Keith charged at her. A sick, twisted smirk turned up the corner of her mouth and just before Keith would have shoved her back with his blade right up against her throat, someone got between them. 

Nearly tripping over his own feet, Keith’s heart fell to his stomach. He skid to a stop. A shiver crawled up his spine as the world uprooted beneath his body. 

“Sh--Shiro?” Keith could barely hear his own voice over his pulse. “What… Shiro, what’re you--” 

The punch to his gut came without warning. So forceful the breath was shoved right out of his lungs in a strained, painful grunt. Keith dropped to his knees. 

“Take him, too,” Haggar said, already leaving for another room. “I can find use for him.” 

Shiro stepped forward, coming for him and ready to attack. Keith flipped backward, blade at the ready. This couldn’t be his Shiro. It wasn’t. 

“Shiro, please,” Keith said. “It’s me. Keith. You _know_ me.” 

But Shiro didn’t answer. He came at him. Eyes flat and focused. Every move mechanical. Shiro threw a punch with his steel right arm. Keith’s only choice was to deflect with his blade. White sparks flew between them as they locked together. 

“Shiro!” Keith shouted. “Look at me! You’re in there somewhere, I know you are!”

Eyes lifting to meet Keith’s, he sneered and swept his feet out from under him. Keith landed on his back with a grunt. A fist slammed into his face. For just an instant, everything went dark. As the world reshaped around him, Keith opened his eyes and saw the ground moving beneath him. Nothing made sense. His head spun. He groaned. Felt the tight pull around his chest. 

With a horrible twist of his heart, Keith realized what was happening. Shiro was dragging him by the back of the shirt. To somewhere Keith was quite certain he never wanted to go. He knew he needed to play this right. Shiro, for now, believed him to be passed out. If he suddenly struggled, he’d realize Keith had woken. 

Shiro, though, hadn’t dislodged Keith’s blade from his clenched fist. He still had it. All he had to do was bring himself to use it. 

*

_**Now** _

Shiro had taken his shirt off at Keith’s request. While it was always lovely staring at that chest, Keith had more important things on his mind than lust. A demon’s blade had the potential of leaving scars across divine flesh. But Shiro, just as he assured him, had been left scar free after their fight. 

“And your ankle?” Keith peeled back the blankets. “How’s that?”

Just to prove his point, Shiro moved his foot back and forth and around in circles. Healed then, even if bruises remained around it. 

“I’m sorry,” Keith said again. “I stabbed you, Shiro. I hurt you.” 

“You did what you had to, Keith.” He coaxes his chin back toward him. “You _found_ me.” 

“Well.” Keith nuzzled against Shiro’s chest, his head tucked right beneath his chin. “I would never give up on you.” 

Those big, strong arms tightened around him. No place in the world felt safer than when Shiro wrapped him in his embrace. Shiro had always been there for him, starting that day at the Garrison. Every mistake. Every success. Every setback. 

“You know I love you, right?” Shiro asked. “So much.”

Keith never expected to fall in love with him. With the angel who happened across him about to make a bad decision and, instead of using his authority to reprimand Keith, used it to help him instead. 

What’s more, he never expected the angel to love him, a good for nothing demon, back. Yet somehow, against every law of natural order, Shiro did love him. 

“I know,” Keith said. “I love you, too.” 

Keith didn’t know when it happened. He could never tell anyone when friendship turned to something so much more for him. But it had. One day his heart unfurled and within it, he found himself looking at Shiro in an entirely new way. For a moment, he drowned in the feeling -- the grandeur of what love could really be. When he could breathe again, he shivered in its onslaught, captured in awe. 

They’d confessed their love for one another on the eve of Shiro’s first departure in years. Keith had been naive to believe that he’d remain close forever. Shiro was an angel. A Paladin, at that. His job -- like Keith’s own mother’s -- required him to leave. He protected people. The world needed him. Not just Keith. 

Still. 

Keith had been angry.

His father had died.

His mother left. 

Shiro was leaving. 

They’d gone out to the desert together. The same as they had that first day. Evening this time, the skies a swirl of reds and golds as far as the eye could see. It was cold. Shiro wrapped his wings around him. 

“What it is?” Shiro had finally asked after they’d sat there in silence for too many minutes to count. “What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing,” Keith grunted. 

Shiro snickered. “It’s never nothing. C’mon, Keith. Tell me.” 

His jaw clenched. Shiro always knew when it was something. 

“I don’t want you to go,” he admitted and before Shiro could respond, “I _know_ you have to. I just don’t want you to.”

“I’ll be back, you know,” Shiro said. “You know that, right?”

“Sure you will,” he grumbled. “Just like my mother.” 

Which wasn’t fair of Keith. Krolia had come back again and again just as she promised. But she always needed to leave again and always asked Keith if he’d rather she stay. The truth was, he did. But it was also true that he wanted her to be where she was needed most. 

Just as with Shiro. 

“I _will_ return, Keith,” Shiro promised. “I’ll always return.” 

Keith lifted his eyes to meet Shiro’s gaze. Found his eyes simmering with something so much deeper than a simple promise. 

“Why?” 

“Because,” Shiro whispered. Brought his big, safe hand to the side of Keith’s face. “I’ll always come back for you.” 

Even now, Keith could recall how he trembled. He’s quite certain the first taste of Shiro’s lips against his still tingled. He knew then and there, that he’d always follow Shiro. A demon and his angel. If Shiro was okay with that, then so was Keith. 

“What’re you thinking about?” Shiro asked. “You’re smiling.” 

Keith chuckled. “Can’t I smile?”

“Of course you can.” Shiro kissed the top of his head. “I love when you smile.” 

That only made Keith smile more. He hummed and pressed a soft kiss to Shiro’s chin, running his fingers along his feathers. So soft and silky to touch, black dust glittering even in the dim lights.

“I was thinking about the first time you kissed me,” Keith answered. “Do you remember?”

“As if I’d forget. You were mad at me.”

Scoffing, Keith readjusted himself so that he straddled Shiro’s lap. Shiro smiled at him. After two months of uncertainty, that smile was the closest thing to paradise Keith could ever feel. 

“I was not mad at _you_ ,” he grumbled. “I was just _mad_.”

Shiro combed gently fingers through Keith’s hair, fixing his palm to the side of his face again. All the black fires of the underworld could burn him up now and Keith would die happy and content. 

“I know it,” Shiro murmured. “C’mere.” 

He brought him closer and kissed him. Long. Hard. Passionate. The way he had the last night Keith saw him. 

A fire breathed new life throughout Keith’s body. Molten gold that poured down his throat and pooled in his belly. Warm and soothing and able to make even the darkest insides glow. Shiro’s hands locked at either side of Keith’s waist, keeping him still. No matter. Keith thread his fingers through Shiro’s hair and tugged back so that he could graze the tip of his tongue right over Shiro’s throat. 

“Keith,” Shiro whispered. “I want you.”

“Mm.” Keith peppered kisses back up to Shiro’s lips. “I want you, too. But--”

“No, buts. I promise, I’m okay.” 

Keith eyed him warily, looking for any hints of lying. Shiro wasn’t the type though. If he still had injuries, he’d let Keith know. Shiro was serious. And a smirk curled up on Keith’s mouth. 

“Good,” he murmured. “Cause I’m gonna make you feel so good you won’t be able to stand it.”

*

_**Then** _

Shiro lied motionless on the floor, his right arm severed and several feet away. Blood soiled Keith’s hands. Shiro’s blood. Blade dropping from his grip, Keith crawled to him. 

“Shiro…” Keith pulled him into his arms. “Shiro, wake up. Please, wake up.” 

He wasn’t glowing. Keith couldn’t see his light. 

“No!” Keith cried. “Don’t give up on me, Shiro. You promised you wouldn’t. You _promised_.” 

Footsteps. They were coming heavy and fast. Keith reached for his blade. If they were coming for them, he would die protecting Shiro. 

They burst through the doors. Keith nearly fell over with a gasp. He hovered over Shiro’s body and let out a cry. 

“Mother…” he said. “Mother, please, help him.”

Krolia ran in with Ulaz and Thace on her heels. He had no idea what she was doing there with them, but he didn’t care. The more help, the better. 

“It’s going to be okay, son.” She knelt beside him. “Help is on the way.” 

Help did come. It came in the form of another angel. Another paladin, in fact. Trusted. Powerful. A friend. 

“Allura,” Keith whispered as she placed herself by Shiro’s head. “Can you help him?”

Her pink tipped wings opened wide, the ends already glowing with the magic that ran through her. 

“I’m going to try, Keith,” she said. “I’m going to try.”

Her voice held the making of tears, but there were none to be seen. Keith found himself envious of her. Of her ability to even try to help Shiro when all he could do was fight him back until he wouldn’t any longer. Until Shiro had him pinned to the ground, ready to make his final blow. All Keith could do in that moment was look up into the blank eyes of the man he loved and say it one last time. 

The _I love you, Shiro_ made Shiro hesitate just long enough for Keith to gather one last bit of strength. That last bit of strength left Shiro without an arm, but right before he staggered away and hit the ground, he looked at Keith. And knew him. 

“Speak to him, Keith,” Allura instructed. “He’s looking for you. Let your voice guide him home.” 

Keith gathered Shiro’s hand in his. Kissed his knuckles and leaned his brow into them. 

“Shiro,” Keith said. “Shiro, I’m here. Come home to me. You promised you’d always come back. Please…” A single tear slipped from the corner of Keith’s eye. “Don’t leave me.” 

The hand in Keith’s shifted. Keith picked his head up and swung his gaze to Shiro’s face. Scrunched now rather than still. His lips parted. His eyes squeezed. Opened. 

A gasp caught in Keith’s throat. Shiro’s eyes were opened. They stared only upward, dazed and unfocused, but they were opened. He groaned, slightly. Then his gaze drifted to meet Keith’s. For just a heartbeat, all he did was stare. Until a smile lifted the corners of his mouth. 

“Keith,” he whispered. “You found me.” 

Pressing that warm, soft hand against his own cheek, Keith nodded. “Of course I did. I love you.” 

Things went more smoothly after that. The rest of the Blades of Marmora, who had come at his mother’s insistence, secured the entire building. They had Haggar in custody. None of that really concerned Keith in that moment. He fussed over Shiro. Made sure he was comfortable. Not in any pain. He stayed right be his side.

Until the Garrison loaded him into an ambulance and left without a word about his condition or where they were taking him. Which left Keith to figure it out on his own.

“He’s alive,” Krolia said when they were standing there alone. “Take comfort in that.” 

“I know,” Keith replied. “He’s strong. Thank you, Mother.” 

All that Keith had left to do now was figure out where they’d taken Shiro. 

And he would. 

*

_**Now** _

Shiro, arms behind him back, looked up at him from his knees, eyes wide and pleading. Still much too coherent. By the time Keith was done with him tonight, those eyes would be dark and clouded. Void of all those emotions. Too lost in every pure, unadulterated sin to even think beyond pleasure. 

Fingers thread through that thick, black and white hair, Keith yanked back just hard enough that it pulled a hiss from clenched teeth. Those dark gray eyes glazed over when they reopened. Shiro licked his lips. Leaned forward. 

“Keith,” he whispered. “I want…”

“I know what you want,” Keith said. He tugged at Shiro’s halo. It made him grunt, the connection between angel and halo tangible. “But you have to _wait_.” 

“But--”

Keith slipped two clawed fingers around Shiro’s chin. Lifted. Shiro swallowed roughly. Just enough to give that glorious cock of his a little jump. With it, a small spurt of pre-come. Oh, this was just getting good. 

In front of him, Shiro bit his lip and whimpered. A beautiful sound. Keith’s roamed over the body waiting for him. Shiro really was exquisite. He was the stars and the moon. Made from brightness and life of his own galaxy. And he was here with Keith. 

“Open your mouth for me, love,” Keith whispered. “Be a good boy.” 

A dreamy look passed over Shiro’s face. His eyes drifted close, his body swaying softly to the side before righting again. He licked his lips. Opened his mouth. 

Keith gave his own length a few casual strokes before stepping closer to Shiro, waiting so patiently. He still couldn’t believe the world afforded him this beautiful, tender opportunity. To give Shiro what he wanted, craved, maybe even needed. Just a little bit of time to escape. To leave one reality in favor for another. One where only he and Keith existed. He trusted Keith enough to take him there time and time again. Keith couldn’t be more honored. 

When Keith pressed the head of his erection to Shiro’s bottom lip, Shiro whimpered for more of it. Slowly. Softly. Keith eased inside his waiting mouth. So warm and moist and just pure bliss as Shiro began to suck. 

“You look so good with your lips stretched around me,” Keith murmured. “Such a pretty mouth.” 

A blush tickled Shiro’s cheeks. He’d never been one to take much to compliments. Brushing them off. Humble, through and through. He couldn’t do that here. Shiro couldn’t escape the kind words. He couldn’t answer them. All he could do was listen. It never failed to make him blush. 

“You’re doing such a good job, sweetheart,” Keith said by means of a deep, guttural moan. “So good.”

Shiro groaned in response. His hips thrusted forward while his hands remained behind his back, secured in place only by the weight of Keith’s earlier request. 

“Wanna touch yourself, baby?”

Mouth still stretched around Keith’s length, Shiro flicked his eyes up to find his. In them was the answer he couldn’t voice. Shiro still nodded. A smile curled up on Keith’s mouth. He cupped Shiro’s hand. Shiro nuzzled into the warm touch. 

“Go ahead,” Keith permitted. “But don’t get yourself off. That’s _my_ job.” 

Shiro whined but didn’t protest. He simply wrapped his hand around himself and rubbed his own erection for a few minutes. 

“Let’s get you back in bed, Shiro.”

As Keith took his cock out of Shiro’s mouth, Shiro’s eyebrows pulled in. With the back of his hand, he wiped a bit of drool away from his chin.

“But… But, Keith… I haven’t gotten you…”

Keith placed two fingers over Shiro’s lips to shush him. He shook his head and pursed his lips and even wagged his finger at him. All enough to make Shiro shrink into his shoulders. 

“Don’t you trust me, angel?” 

“Yes,” Shiro whispered. “Yes, I trust you.” 

Holding Shiro’s chin between his fingers, Keith leaned down to press a firm, passionate kiss. Shiro moaned against his mouth. Parted his lips to invite Keith inside. An invitation Keith gladly accepted. 

“Good boy.” Keith gently pressed his brow to Shiro’s. “Now, get back on that bed so I can make you feel how good you are.”

Keith took his time with him. Before anything, he made sure to kiss every inch of his body until he trembled so much he couldn’t stay still. He’s pleasured him with his mouth. Had Shiro twisting and squirming and just _pleading_ to come. He opened him up slowly. One finger at a time until he almost had his whole hand inside of him. Shiro screamed and begged for more. Good thing these rooms were mostly sound proof. 

Now, Keith pushed inside of Shiro, finding the closest thing to peace he ever knew. So close to the man he loved. Unable to tell where one stopped and the next began as they rocked together, bringing each of them closer and closer to oblivion. 

“Keith…” Shiro whimpered. “Please… please, can I…” 

“Not yet, sweetheart,” Keith answered, pushing into him soft and slow, keeping him right on the edge. “You wait your turn.” 

Shiro clenched his jaw and shook his head in wild desperation. Tiny whines and whimpers escaped through his teeth every few seconds. A tear slipped out of the corner of his eye. 

“Please,” he whispered, doing everything he could to maintain control. “Sir…” 

It was the _sir_ that tipped Keith over the edge, his climax rolling up his spine and bursting sweet rapture everywhere. He grabbed Shiro’s cock and pumped once. Twice.

“Come for, angel,” he murmured. “Go on now.”

Shiro fell silent. His back arched as ribbons of white sailed across his belly. Keith stroked him through it. Almost until he was a bit too sensitive. Something they played with at times, but not tonight. Tonight, Keith wiped him clean and crawled over to him. Shiro trembled in the aftermath. Eyes closed and lips parted as he heaved in big gulps of air.

“Hey,” Keith whispered. “You okay, Shiro?” 

A smile lifted his lips. He nodded. “Yes. Very much. Will you hold me, Keith?”

Keith snickered. “Like you have to ask.” 

Once under the covers -- and after Shiro at least has his shirt back on because Keith won’t have his angel being cold -- Keith wrapped his arms around him. Shiro rested against his chest. 

“I can hear your heart,” he whispered. 

“Yeah?”

“Mhm.”

Keith cradled the back of Shiro’s head and kissed the top of his hair. “You should. It’s talking to you loud enough.”

“Oh? What’s it saying?”

“Can’t you tell?” 

Fingers seeking Keith’s hand, Shiro took hold of it and brought it up to his lips. He kissed each and every knuckle and then kept it close to his own heart. 

“Yes,” he answered. “I can tell. Because my heart is saying it, too.” 

Keith grinned as Shiro nuzzled closer. Hooked their ankles and pressed a kiss to Keith’s shoulder. 

Keith had found his angel. 

And with him, the only place in the world he needed to be. 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to check me out on tumblr for more fun at [thebestpersonherelovesbucky](http://thebestpersonherelovesbucky.tumblr.com/) or pillowfort at [thebestpersonherelovesbucky](https://www.pillowfort.io/thebestpersonherelovesbucky%22) or twitter [thebestpersonherelovesbucky](https://twitter.com/thebestpersonh1)


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